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. . . and to speak to some of the rest of your questions: correct, the two instruments playing together in their respective D and G settings wouldn't work, since they'd always be a fifth apart. ...

Deering makes both 17- and 19-fret tenor banjos. I was lucky to snap up a used one last year, a 17-fret one which spent a terrific New Hampshire spring afternoon with me today. -- Paul

ollaimh, that is a Campanella "Due" made by Joe Cleary in Burlington VT. As it happens I have one of his F-models that I wouldn't trade for anything else I've played.

Thanks, all. There's plenty to chew on here, and I appreciate your help. -- Paul

If there are too few wraps around the post, the string will not have wound below the hole in the post. Since the cross-section of the post here is not round, the result of turning the tuning knob...

Just a quick lick to the relevant finger surfaces, gives me enough "tack" to keep the pick from wandering. Possibly a little more effective just after a sip of beer. In any case, a low-tech answer...